travel superlatives

welcome to introspection ft. harsehaj! ⭐️ i’m harsehaj, a 19 y/o always up to something in social good x tech.

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onto today’s topic: my travel superlatives ✅ 

i’ve been asked very frequently which country i traveled to has been my favourite. it’s hard to pick one — some countries won in certain categories, while others had an edge elsewhere.

so, here are my travel superlatives. for context, the countries in this roster are the following: denmark, italy, france, switzerland, tanzania, south korea, thailand, vietnam, india, and japan. also, keep in mind that i didn’t exhaust all that these countries had to offer so i’m just ranking based one what i saw and experienced.

best food: india & thailand — i’m a sucker for indian food, sorry. 🤷‍♀️ the food was always flavourful, and it wasn’t hard at all to find vegetarian options in either country.

country i can’t wait to go back to: vietnam — i didn’t get to spend as much time as i wanted to and definitely want to explore more cities.

country i most want to live: honestly? i can’t see myself living in any of these countries long-term. maybe japan or switzerland for a year or two.

best views: japan — specifically, the city of the tea farm i interned at. there was something magical about waking up to the views of mountains covered with trees and pink clusters of cherry blossoms every morning. the whole little town felt straight out of a studio ghibli film. 🌸 

best value: vietnam — you’re telling me i got to do a 3-day motorbiking loop with food, accommodations and more included for $200? yeah, best value with some of the best views i’ve seen my whole life.

best accommodations: japan — although i stayed in hostels, they were surprisingly fancy in every single city i hit. of course, this includes the traditional japanese home i stayed in at the tea farm. pristine and so much attention to customer experience.

favourite city: kyoto, japan — many people say kyoto is overrated because of the insane number of tourists, but i spent most out my time away from the touristy areas. gorgeous views, cute cafes, and friendly people, kyoto quickly became my favourite city among all of the countries i’ve been to. 🌇 

most memorable: tanzania — i truly crossed off s-tier bucket list items. i mean, i hiked kilimanjaro and was face to face with wild lions. of course the trip made for memories and sensations i’ll remember forever.

best public transportation: japan — i love the shinkansen! i could get literally anywhere (even in the countryside) with just public transportation (buses, subway, shinkansen) and it was time effective. not only that, it was so clean.

most surprising: vietnam — i didn’t think i’d love vietnam so quickly. i fell in love in just 4 days and want to see more. 🎒 

best dressed: south korea — this isn’t surprising. the fashion game had me floored and i bought so many clothes (korea also wins best shopping, also japan was close).

biggest culture shock: tanzania — i’m not use to haggling and catcalling to the extent i experienced in tanzania. it was definitely a surprise.

friendliest people: thailand — i was met with smiles at every single corner as soon as i stepped into thailand. the people were so kind. 🫂 

best travel experience: japan — overall, i have to say japan was my favourite trip of them all. i did spend 2 months there after all (and i still haven’t seen it all!). it checked off the boxes for everything i enjoy while traveling.

there it is, all laid out! i could keep listing more titles but we’d be here for a while. i can’t wait to add more adventures to my roster. (:

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